#gwierante

[mythicmint]

A Treatise Regarding the Myth of the So-Called "Dark Seldarine" and the Misguided Interpretation of the Drow by Surface Dwellers

This is a continuation of my previous post, which can be found here!

A Treatise Regarding the Myth of the So-Called “Dark Seldarine” and the Misguided Interpretation of Drow by Surface Dwellers (pt. 2, the Mythos)

The Mythology

Introductory Note

In Gwierante tellings, the origins of the elven deities have the same foundations as those told in Seldarine tellings, but with significant deviation between the two as the stories go on. In the following segment of recounted myths, I have done my best to combine stories from all branches of drow faith, so as to remain true to shared view. It can easily be noted however that these myths are likely biased– my aim in this regard is not to tell a historically accurate version of the events so much as it is to tell it from the drow’s perspective. As an author I would also note that gods are multifaceted beings, to a point that mortals cannot fathom. It is possible that all or none of the following mythos is true. Reflected in these following stories one can also see frequent lessons told to drow children by their matrons, as is often the same in the myths of other cultures. In terms of the writing, there is another point I shall make for clarity: as a deity of fluidity, Corellon is referred to using he/they pronouns. In our modern time many faithful also reference the god with feminine pronouns, but the Coronal of Arvandor seems to have favored male pronouns when Araushnee was his consort, which this author assumes was out of appreciation for their duality as a pair.

Birth of the Pantheon

While much is untold and kept secret regarding the history of the gods, it is generally agreed upon within elvenkind that Corellon was the first among the Seldarine. Just as each day begins with the rising of the sun, so too did the pantheon begin with the birth of Corellon. The Sun Lord comprised every aspect of elves that are known today; their fluidity, their wisdom, their pride, their arrogance. In these aspects, the god came into frequent conflict with Gruumsh, who opposed them in all things. (The author would like to note here that some splinter beliefs place Corellon and Gruumsh as two sides of a coin– they were made to oppose each other, but at the same time cannot be fulfilled without the challenge of the other.) In this time before time, the deities’ battles spanned the planes of existence, both wounding the other infrequently. From the spilled ichor of Gruumsh and Corellon sprung the primal orcs and elves, from which in turn the Orc and Seldarine pantheons ascended. Corellon and Gruumsh, when not locked in one of their many combats, engaged with their new fellows, and grew to know them as equals. 

These new deities were vast in their appearances, shaped by the lands that they had sprung from. The newly-fledged Lady of the Stars, called Araushnee by the Seldarine, had been born from obsidian and ruby. Corellon was struck by her beauty, and took her as his consort. In time Araushnee bore him twins– the gods Eilistraee and Vhaeraun, who were kept safe in their mother’wws sacred grove whilst their father roamed. The Sun Lord saw in his consort a counterpart to their own being; an Artisan to their Warrior, the Night to his Day. But this reflection was not perfect– the Artist was far cleverer compared to Corellon, and her eight crimson eyes saw more of reality than her consort could in their arrogance. Not long after her ascension, The Lady of Stars saw in her domain the beginnings of the settings of destiny– fixed and unabating. Araushnee thought these unchanging foundations cruel for such fluid beings as the gods, and pulled from the stars these trappings of fate. But upon their sharp points she pricked her fingers, and these droplets of blood fell to the Earth. Araushnee was an artist, and in her wisdom she wove the lines of fate into a silken web, fragile enough to be changed, but strong enough to ensnare beings within it. With this the goddess ensured that though the tides of destiny were fluid, none could avoid its ceaseless pull– not even her. And from those fallen droplets of her ichor were birthed the first spiders, who learned from their mother how to weave webs, and how to walk along them in turn.  With the Web of Fate now established, Araushnee could walk its threads and view time as it stretched infinitely before and behind her. In these woven futures the Artisan foresaw the creation of beings that were the children of the Seldarine, fluid in shape and passionate in mind. From these brief glimpses the goddess grew fond of these not-yet-made creations and their fleeting mortal lives, and resolved to work to bring them about. It is also said that in this moment, Araushnee saw the strength that these beings would bring to the Seldarine, and this strengthened her resolve. The Lady of Stars knew that she could not do it on her own; she saw the disfavor other members of the Seldarine held her in due to her status as Corellon’s consort, and in turn knew that without the Sun Lord’s support, it was likely that the creations would be loved only by her. And so the Weaver went to the Warrior, and told him of the long-eared figures she had foreseen. Corellon saw his consort’s enthusiasm, and was in turn impacted by the idea of having more effect in the material world through these beings. The First of the Seldarine told Araushnee that he would visit the world and consider her request in time. In her enthusiasm, the Artisan waited with bated breath, biding her time as Corellon was away.

Creation of the Elves

Finally, Araushnee, along with her twins, was summoned to Toril. When they arrived they were greeted by the remainder of the Seldarine, congregated at the edge of a forest. Out of the stand of trees strode Corellon, and from behind moving shapes followed him into the light. They were tall and slender, made in the Sun Lord’s image, and Corellon introduced them as elves, children of his inspiration. He had made them long of life and bright of eye, formed from morning light, and the Seldarine received them with joy. But the Weaver stood in shock at her consort’s betrayal. These creatures, formed from the Sun Lord’s brilliance and will, were not the same she had seen. Corellon had demented Araushnee’s vision and passion, and taken only the traits that pleased him, ridding the world of the richness it craved. The Lady of Stars seethed with rage that she had not previously known. The Coronal of Arvandor’s arrogance had gone too far.

Araushnee sequestered herself from the other deities of the Seldarine, preoccupied as they were with their new sun elves. From the banks of the stream that ran through her grove, the Artisan took cool water and dark clay, and from the trees in her forest she took pale bark and copper leaves. She cupped these items in her hands and warmed them with her divine starlight, breathing life into them in turn. And then from each the Artisan’s clever fingers formed figures– eight elves from each source, so that none of them would be alone. From the cool water was born the sea elves, adapted to live in the flowing waters of the world. From the pale silvered bark came the moon elves, flexible as the wood they were made from. From the copper leaves came the wood elves, who shone in both the sunlit and wooded places of the world. All of these elves, Araushnee had foreseen in her original vision, and had spoken of them to her consort. But just as Corellon had made the sun elves in his bright image, so too did Araushnee make elves in her dark one. From clay the Weaver formed the dark elves, with skin of stone and hair of starlight. All of the creatures she had made were fond of her, and she of them, with particular affection held in the dark elves for their starlit creator. The Artisan sent her creations out into the world so that they might choose their own fates, but the dark elves remained close to Araushnee and her children, watching and learning from these gods in turn. The Lady of the Stars’ vision had been more than fulfilled– elves now walked the land, intrinsically tied to the pantheon and the plane that had made them.

But all was not yet well in Arvandor– Corellon saw his consort’s creations and flew into a prideful rage. How dare Araushnee have the gall to create beings that demented the image that he had perfected? How dare these new elves mingle with his sunlit elves and dampen their beauty? In their rage, Corellon turned his combatant’s spirit inward, towards his consort and her wrongdoings against the Coronal. The angered Corellon called the Seldarine pantheon to meeting, and demanded Araushnee’s explanation for her insolence. It is not known by mortals what was said on that day. Some accounts state that Araushnee accused Corellon of corruption, while others say that she begged for her consort’s forgiveness, and while more yet say that the Weaver stayed silent entirely. What is for certain is this: with the borders to the divine realm of Arvandor unguarded with Corellon’s light turned inward, the deity Gruumsh broke through on a warpath. 

The Blinding of Gruumsh

The battle that took place after is a legend that holds fast across dozens of different faiths of various races: the Blinding of Gruumsh. The orc god and Corellon were locked in battle for anywhere between hours and weeks on end, each blow matched one for one. This battle was the true culmination of the conflict between the warrior gods, and may have gone on forever if not for misfortune rearing its head. Sahndrian– the sunlit sword of the Coronal– shattered. Elven myth states that Araushnee cursed the sheath in her anger, while Gweriante myth grants the goddess no such association, but nevertheless, Corellon’s trusted blade broke. The Sun Lord was forced to retreat so that he might use his bow, but Gruumsh would not surrender his advantage. While Sehanine Moonbow, having been assisting Corellon with illusions, worked to repair the blade, the Orc Lord struck out with his great spear Nairdnhas, its tip dripping with paralytic poison. Yet Gruumsh’s strike never landed– Araushnee, panicked, pulled upon the Web and forced Nairdnhas to strike its master. Gruumsh was paralyzed by his own weapon, waylaid by Araushnee’s clever strike. The First of the Seldarine seized the opportunity and stabbed the Orc Lord through the arm with an arrow. In his struggle to block the attack Gruumsh failed to notice the dagger still held in his hand, and gouged out his own eye. With this, Corellon won the battle, stumbling back to the Seldarine while Gruumsh retreated in pain. 

Yet despite Araushnee’s aid, Corellon was enraged. They accused their consort of betrayal, stating that her rebellion against him was nothing more than a distraction, so that Gruumsh might break in and slaughter Corellon and their new creations. Araushnee denied this, as she could not foresee Gruumsh, nor could he foresee her, as their powers canceled out the other. But Corellon did not hear her, perhaps could not– wounded and exhausted as they were from battle, addled with the setting of the sun, he accused the Artisan of treachery of the highest order. The Warrior believed that just as the Weaver had forced Nairdnhas to strike against Gruumsh, so too had she broken Sahndrian. She had planned for Corellon to be killed, so that she and her new elves might rule Arvandor. In his rage the Warrior went to strike her, much to the Seldarine’s shock. But his attack did not hit the Lady of the Stars– it struck Vhaeraun, who had leapt between his mother and the blow. The attack sliced across the Lord of Shadow’s face, marring it forevermore. As her son stumbled back from the blow, Araushnee felt anger boil inside of her once more. She would not let anyone touch her children in anger without punishment, not even the First of the Seldarine. Though inexperienced in combat, the Weaver lunged for her consort, meeting him blow for blow, dancing along the strands of the Web as her advantage. It is believed in Gwierante faith that Araushnee would have won this battle due to her having the upper hand, if not for the treachery of the Seldarine goddesses. It was known to the Lady of Stars that Corellon had dallied with other goddesses– Sehanine Moonbow, Aerdrie Faenya, and Hanali Celanil. Never had the Sun Lord been faithful to her or to them, but in that moment of combat the three goddesses combined their wills in a way that had been unforeseen. From this union sprung the triune goddess Angharradh, who in her great power stole from Araushnee her dominion over the Stars, and her place as Corellon’s consort. With her appearance the Weaver faltered, and her advantage was lost.

With the newly restored Sahndrian in hand and his new Queen by his side, Corellon declared Araushnee unfit to remain a goddess of the Seldarine. From her they tore her name and dominions, and the Weaver was banished from Arvandor. Corellon, betrayer that he was, struck the Artisan and mortally wounded her legs so that she might never again walk the threads of the Web, citing her treachery as reason for the blow. Banished from her home and from Corellon’s light, the goddess fled to the depths of the Underdark, where the sun could not reach her.

The Banished and Betrayed

Bleeding and barely mobile in the bowels of the earth, the Artisan mourned what she had lost, weeping for her identity and for the people who had once been her family. Her cries drove away the dark creatures that resided beneath the ground, who feared the wounded wails that sounded akin to death knells. The Weaver stumbled deep underground, trailing her divine blood behind her. But eventually she could go no further– her legs, wounded as they had been, would carry her no more. The Artisan could not walk the Web as she had before, and cried out in pain and fury. But all was not yet lost– for the goddess was the Mother of Spiders, and her husband had cast out her arachnid creations along with her. So too had he cast out their children. Vhaeraun was banished for his betrayal, and Eilistraee begged for the Coronal to banish her, so that she might bring light to the dark that they would soon reside in. In his fondness for his silver daughter, Corellon granted the request. Practitioners of Gwierante faith attest that this is the one mercy the Sun Lord granted the pantheon. The Shadow Lord and Dark Maiden followed the trail of their mother’s ichor, carrying with them her sacred spiders. When they arrived their Mother was nearly dead, her blood staining the surrounding stone. But the first spiders acted quickly– they bound the Artisan’s wounds in webs, and gave unto her their own forms to mimic whilst she healed. The Mother of Spiders was touched by the kindness of her creations, and accepted from them their legs so that she might walk the strands of fate once more. As she rose again, now with the body of a spider, she took on a new name, one that she saw in the mouths of her worshippers in a time not yet past. The Weaver named herself Lolth, and declared her dominion over the Underdark, where she would shelter any who could not remain in Corellon’s light. Her children allied with her, Vhaeraun claiming dominion over the dark places, where those banished from sunlight would reside, and Eilistraee claiming dominion over the moon, opposite of Corellon’s sun. They called themselves the Gweirante, and so it was.

Descent of the Drow

In terms of history on a godly scale, the Descent of the Drow is a rather recent event. Occurring only thirteen thousand years ago, this event was preceded by the Crown Wars fought between neighboring elven kingdoms. Several disasters racked the world during the magically charged Crown Wars, culminating in an event that destroyed the dark elf kingdom of Miyeritar in the area now called the High Moor. The kingdom of Ilythiir, enraged by the damage delivered to their fellow dark elves, began to use dangerous magic in an attempt to get their revenge on the kingdom responsible, Aryvaandar. For centuries war raged back and forth between the two kingdoms, until the prayers of Aryvaandar were answered. Corellon Latherian, in order to save his high elven kingdom, cursed the dark elves to be stung and weakened by his sunlight. Hurt and afraid, the drow (as they were now called, unmoored from Corellon as they were) retreated en masse to the Underdark in less than two months. But Aryvaandar and the Sun Lord were not yet done. With the drow underground, the Warrior assisted the elves of Aryvaandar in casting a ritual that bound their race to the Underdark, permanently. The Curse of the Dark Elves, as it is known, forced the magical life force of the drow to be tied to the lingering faezress that remains only in hostile areas of the subterranean realm. From then on the drow were forced to adapt to this harsh environment, and were welcomed with open arms by Lolth, the goddess that had first made them. Embraced once again by the Lady of the Underdark, the drow found comfort in her Web of Fate, leading them successfully through the dangerous environment until they could find their footing.

Closing Notes

The drow, as a culture, are oftentimes motivated by what they perceive as an owed debt to the Gwierante. To be imprisoned in a dark and hostile environment, hated for the crimes of your ancestors, is the fate of the drow. But by their strength and by the blessings of their deities, the drow have not just survived, but thrived. In our modern day where more and more drow fight their way through the sunlight, it is more important than ever for surface world races to understand the history driving drow beliefs and culture. This author has tried to share even a small portion of these beliefs, and solemnly thanks you for reading, whether or not you agree with them.

May the darkness shelter you, 

Dr Iraezyr dal Linthrae von Do’ Iryn

For whoever read this far, congrats you're a champ lol and this post and last was 17 pages combined. Gold star from me, and thanks for reading! I'd love to answer questions if folks have any :))

[mythicmint]

A Treatise Regarding the Myth of the So-Called "Dark Seldarine" and the Misguided Interpretation of the Drow by Surface Dwellers

Recently I was struck by the urge to rewrite some mythos of the drow and their associated pantheon in D&D, and decided to frame it like an academic paper since that's what I'm mostly familiar with. While writing I was also seized by the need to detail a few of my ideas for drow society while incorporating current dnd lore revamps, and so now that's in there too. I took several pretty sizable chunks of inspiration from Kismet's Dungeons and Dragons, this blog by Timothy S. Brannan, and the WoTC article detailing new lore for their video game. Also I'd like to say thanks to the people who write and maintain wiki pages-- your hard work is infinitely appreciated lmao.

Also I don't know how to format Tumblr pages yet so this might turn out weird, and also be warned because this is,,, really long. Any tips regarding a more efficient format for this would be gladly welcomed lol!

This is part 1 of this post, part 2 can be found here!

A Treatise Regarding the Myth of the So-Called “Dark Seldarine” and the Misguided Interpretation of Drow by Surface Dwellers (pt. 1, the Society)

Background Information

A Brief Overview

While this treatise is meant to share the drow perspective of the myths of the “Dark Seldarine”, this author first considers it important to provide the reader with brief background knowledge of the drow and their society. The author considers this knowledge to be crucial for understanding the depth of these myths, and in turn crucial for acknowledging the damage that false myths have done to the world’s perception of the drow. As the author is a drow themself, they know this pain intimately from previous attempts to spread their theories. Discussion of the drow and their history in the following pages shall be brief, with the majority of this paper being reserved for a retelling of the myths that lay the first foundations for the drow pantheon. A note before we begin– the pantheon that most surface dwellers refer to as the “Dark Seldarine” is named nothing of the sort. Out of respect for the deities of this pantheon, the author shall only refer to them using the name they have chosen, which is the Gwierante. Pronounced {guh-wee-ront}, the word loosely means “Those Betrayed” in a language now long dead.

Who Are the Dark Elves?

The dark elves, more often called the drow, are a subrace of elves that primarily reside in the hostile environment of the Underdark. They live here due to a multitude of factors that make survival outside of their home immensely difficult, leading to settlement in the Underdark being the lesser of two evils. Like the high elves have two regional branches, the drow have three– aevendrow, udadrow, and lorendrow. Popular belief states that lorendrow and aevendrow live above ground, to the far south and north respectively. This is false, and is a misconception born from the drow’s secrecy as well as the unique ecology of the Underdark in these regions. The aevendrow originate in the far North, where they live amongst glaciers and permafrost. As a result of this, aevendrow tend to have lighter gray or blue skin that reflects their icy home, and shorter ears to retain heat. Residing in the far Southern portion of the Faerünian Underdark are the lorendrow, occupying the vast subterranean jungle of this region. These drow have close bonds with the nature around them, similarly to our wood elf cousins, and those who have heritage from the southern jungle possess a natural resistance to heat. The most common mental image when one thinks of a drow is the udadrow, who live in the temperate regions between the extremes of their sister branches. These drow live surrounded by stone and fungal forests, and are the most well known group to individuals on the Sword Coast. While these subspecies of drow all differ, all are forced to remain in the Underdark.

The Underdark

The Underdark is a continent unto itself, and thus cannot be discussed in full in a paper of this size, let alone by an author of this speciality. Mythos states that the Underdark was made during the forming of the Prime World, before it was split into the infinite orientations of the Prime Material Plane. The dark tunnels left behind by the primordials were soon occupied with encroaching aberrations from the Far Realm, seeking to lurk away from the sight of the surface’s many gods. And here they thrived– magical radiation that remained in the subterranean caverns was an ample food source for these creatures from the Far Realm. For the majority of time, the Underdark was not just hostile, but downright deadly to any attempting to live there. This was the case until the gods of the Gwierante fled here to escape the sunlight of Corellon. The deities pressed back against the aberrations, forcing them into the deepest caverns of the region, now called the Deepest Dark. Once the gods had dominion over the upper portions of the subterranean caverns, they spread flora and fauna from their former home of Arvandor, piercing the imposing dark with bioluminescence. 

But though the caverns were now more welcoming, they were still far more hostile than any environment of the surface world. The cavernous spaces are so large as to support their own weather systems, but this precipitation is frequently acidic from the porous rock, or boiling from subterranean magma flows. Though the gods had spread life, very little was capable of extended survival– flora was limited to fungi, mosses, and a few species of grasses. Fauna was primarily composed of giant arthropods, deadly predators, and occasional deep rothé. What little could survive here, however, diversified intensely. The ecology of the Underdark is like nothing seen in the World Above, but remains immensely hostile to individuals trying to live here. But after the Crown Wars, when drow were cursed to never again walk in the sun, they had no choice but to retreat into the caves. They were welcomed by the Gwierante pantheon with open arms, embraced when they had been so cruelly turned away from the Seldarine. Over time spent in their new home, the drow split into the previously mentioned subraces as their physiologies adapted. 

The Northdark, homeland of the aevendrow, is defined by its existence as a frozen expanse that never thaws. This area is known for having subterranean glaciers that are as vast as the caverns they occupy, to the point of cities being carved out of the ice. Flora is rare in the Northdark, with the exception of lichens, ferns, and buried mycelium. Aevendrow have learned to prepare many of these species so that they are safe to eat, but as a race are primarily carnivorous. Qalipu rothé, a subspecies of deep rothé with thicker fat, are uniquely adapted to survive in the sub zero environment of the Northdark, and thus have been domesticated by the aevendrow for their wool, fur, and meat. Also found in this region are: giant bats, cave seals, and deep whales. 

On the complete opposite side of the Underdark lies the isolated Southdark, a massive underground jungle. This region is humid, with heat waxing and waning according to the flows of magma in the area. The Southdark is believed to be the only region wherein trees can be supported, which is thought to be linked to the oppressive heat allowing the seeds to germinate, and an adaptation to use faezress in place of sunlight. Thus the ecology of the Southdark is very similar to that of surface jungles, with the addition of giant spiders. The region has many established trade routes to other regions of the Underdark, as it is less a grouping of tunnels and more so several giant caverns with small doorways between.

Between the Northdark and the Southdark lies the Middark, the largest of the regions, and the area that most closely borders the Sword Coast. The Middark is primarily stone and magivorous plants, with large bodies of subterranean water. The caverns of this region are linked by small, often dwarven made, tunnels, which connect the drow cities that occupy them. Spiders are the most frequently occurring fauna, due to the reverence that the drow treat them with, and the most frequent flora is forests of giant fungi. This region, despite its hostility, is believed to be the most heavily populated in the Underdark. Primarily it is drow that live here, but one can also find duergar and deep gnomes.

Drow Society

On the surface, drow society is viewed as brutal and violent, a place of slavery and savagery. In reality, this is a dementation of the truth. The fact of the matter is that drow society is entirely constructed around survival. The brutal environment of the Underdark necessitates prioritizing the survival of its people and their children. Atop this, the drow cannot escape the Underdark for extended periods of time, even if they avoided the sun. Bound by a curse cast during the Crown Wars, the entire race is tied to the magical radiation of the Underdark, known as faezress. The drow’s reliance on this lingering magic has forced them to remain in this brutal environment, fighting for their lives day in and day out. But by using the very magic they are bound to, the drow have made bastions of cities in scattered locations throughout the Underdark. 

Surface raids are conducted infrequently due to the strain it puts on the drow’s bodies, and are typically only performed for the sake of gaining supplies, rather than outright murdering. While this practice is not ideal and many cities avoid doing it, it is often necessary for survival. (The author would like to state that anyone who thinks this practice proves the race to be evil needs to think long and hard about barbarians and pirates.) Slavery, while once practiced in the past, has not been in effect for a very long time. What surface worlders tend to see as slaves are in fact necromantic constructs, resurrected and maintained by the clergy of Kiranslee. These constructs are used only with permission from the deceased individual, and are kept in good condition. They are treated with great respect– drow view them as active sacrifices from deceased community members, giving their bodies in death so that those still alive might worry about things other than physical labor. Not everyone wishes for their body to be used, and as such the clergy of Kiranslee just as frequently applies death rites to prevent the body from being revived. The bodies of clergy members and children are forbidden from being used as constructs, as it is believed to keep the spirit too distant from the gods. Fighters, merchants, and travelers are the most commonly seen constructs, as well as occasional magical practitioners. While most drow would perform in death simply for the respect of it, their families are also given penance for it, adding an additional layer of motive.

As a tie-in to the importance of survival, drow as a culture consider their history to be priceless, and work hard to maintain it. This can be seen in the practice of children taking their mother’s name between their chosen name and their house name, allowing for heritage to be tracked through the matrilineal line. Drow names also have great meaning– simple names, or “child” names, are gifted by the parents and carried from birth until the individual becomes an adult at 100 years of age. At that time the individual chooses a new name to be known by, oftentimes chosen to reflect aspects of themself. Names can also be rewarded or taken away in extreme situations. For example, the name of the author is Dr. Iraezyr dal Linthrae von Do’ Iryn. Iraezyr means “Mystical Sage”, and was chosen by the author when they began to study the multiverse and its stories. The house name is that of House Do’ Iryn, translating to Walkers in History, and like many house names shows the professions that the family is known for. Between the chosen and house name is the term dal Linthrae. Linthrae is the mother of the author, her name translating to “Genius Seeker”, and the prefix dal means “from; born from or the child of”. Most if not all drow carry the names of their mothers with them, as a sign of respect for going through the difficulty of birthing them, as well as a way of carrying their history as previously mentioned. As drow society is primarily matriarchal, this also makes it much easier to track and remember family members now gone. 

The survival rate for any species in the Underdark is incredibly low, the drow included. This is made worse by the low birth rate that they share with their fellow elves, and as such children are immensely important in their religion and society. To kill a child is a crime deserving of capital punishment, and oftentimes death. Criminals and traitors facing the death penalty are sacrificed to the Gwierante, so that the gods may exercise proper punishment. Many other cultures, especially those of the World Above, consider this to be a brutal way of life, but for the drow this is a quick and just way to rid their homes of dangerous individuals. In Lolthite factions, criminals who are sacrificed often are brought back as driders– half drow and half spider, brought back to live out their lives in punishment. Driders are exiled from drow society for their crimes, forced to live on the edges of society in fear and pain. Only the goddess Lolth is capable of transforming individuals into these monstrous creatures, and members of Gwierante faith are sworn to either shun or slay driders they come across.

Drow society is officially a theocracy, but in everyday life mostly functions as a matriarchy. The governing bodies typically consist of a council of Matron Mothers discussing problems from the city and surrounding areas, who are often joined by various other officials; clergy members, sages, and skilled warriors. Judiciary duties are carried out by an Illiante, a council of high priests that symbolically represent the Gwierante deities and act according to their wills. As both systems are based in group sources of power, many issues brought up by the drow people are resolved democratically. Local bodies of government also frequently involve the temples of worship in the area, as they are dramatically involved in everyday drow life. 

As life in the Underdark is frequently made easier by the blessings and interactions of gods, worship is an everyday part of life. Most families worship the Gwierante as a whole, with some individuals worshiping one deity more than the others. Festivals celebrating the gods and the drow’s continued survival take place biannually. Religion, and the stories that can be learned from the myths associated with it, are deeply important to the drow, to their history, and to their collective identity as a race banished from the surface.

part 2